Changes
by errantimpulses
Summary: As Young Justice makes the transition to Teen Titans, the groups' dynamics are changing...and not everyone's happy about it. [A small collection of Bart and Kon drabbles]
1. Chapter 1

It's not insomnia. He stays up for most of the night, but not because he can't sleep, but because he doesn't need to. He's trying harder to fit in nowadays, so he heads to bed at a reasonable time. He even manages to sleep for a few minutes. But after that, he has to get up and move. He's getting better. He's learned to somewhat control his impulses when he's around others. To appear focused and dependable.

When everyone else is asleep, though, he's free to run through the Tower at whim. To flip through the television channels at the speed he likes. To let himself be distracted by the thought of going for a swim, or a video game, or just taking a quick run to the city. He doesn't have to appear collected. Doesn't have to impress anyone. He finds himself looking forward to the nights. He's surprised at how lonely he _doesn't_ feel during this time. Without the pressure of people evaluating his every move, looking for any sign of impulsiveness to criticize, he feels happier, more comfortable.

It's this feeling that makes him wonder, in these long stretches of night, if this is where he should be. If this is what he should be doing. If this is who he should be. He realizes that it is. In all honesty, what else does he have?


	2. Chapter 2

It happened so suddenly, without any warning. He was still shocked by it, still unsure what had actually occurred. Well, he knew the outcome, the who's and what's, but the why's and how's and when's were a mystery. The "why's" bugged him the most.

Why? Had he done something to upset Kon? He didn't remember having any specific argument, other than their usual ribbings. He hadn't heard Kon mention that they weren't having fun, just a few months ago they'd made a list of all the movies they needed to see together this summer. And then... And then there'd been nothing.

Well. Nothing for Bart. Everything for Kon, everything for Cassie. But for Bart? Zilch, zip, nada. During team meetings, Kon now sat next to Cassie instead of Bart. When Bart wanted to play video games, Kon was always too busy. Bart would find out later that he'd gone out to eat with Cassie, or to a museum, or to buy books. Kon didn't even read! What was he doing buying books with Cassie!

Now every weekend Cassie would arrive and talk about the new movie she'd just been to see. They matched up perfectly with Kon and Bart's list, and, with some subtle prying, Bart found out she had seen every one with Kon. Why hadn't Kon invited him? Kon hadn't even bothered giving Bart his review of the movie. Kon had seen it, he could at least tell Bart whether it was good or not...

Why? What had he done? Was there something wrong with him? Did he bore Kon? It figured - he'd read all those books so people would respect him, and now he was too boring to be fun. Maybe it wasn't him, maybe it was Cassie. 'Cause he could understand Kon wanting to hang out with his other friends. But it wasn't other friends. It was Cassie, Cassie, Cassie, all the time. What did she have that he didn't? Could she do something better than him? Did she make funnier comments at the movies? Was she secretly better than him at PS2? ...Impossible. He just couldn't understand.

He thought he could count on Kon for anything, more than anyone else in his life right now, and would always be able to. Kon was his friend. He was the first person on team Bart spoke to in the morning, and the last he spoke to at night. Well, he used to be. He couldn't remember the last time Kon had spoken to him, directly to him, outside a crisis.

The trips to Kon's bedroom were getting more and more frequent. Bart didn't do anything, didn't enter, didn't even knock. Kon never knew Bart was there - he'd probably fallen asleep or was thinking about _Cassie_. But before going to bed, he'd pause in front of the door, fingers brushing ever so lightly against the wood. He wanted to knock, wanted to burst in and demand Kon tell him what was going on, demand that Kon play videos games with him and go to the movies and eat ice cream and... Just be his friend again. Bart would always pull his hand away from the door before he actually did that. If Kon didn't want to be his friend, he had to deal with it. He didn't understand it. He didn't like it. But he'd learn to live with it.


	3. Chapter 3

Kon gritted his teeth and turned over in his bed. His senses were becoming more and more heightened every day, and the soft skritch skritch at his door every night was seeming louder and louder.

He pulled the pillow over his head and clamped it tightly against his ears. He knew Bart was barely touching the door. Sometimes he didn't even do that, sometimes the shuffling of his feet on the carpet was what made Kon realize he was there. It still sounded like a dog scratching against a screen door. Sometimes, when his X-ray vision kicked in and he could see Bart standing outside, making that face, he could almost hear soft puppy whimpers.

How annoying.

Kon gritted his teeth and repeated that to himself over and over again. Bart was just annoying. He always had been an annoying little kid who got underfoot and screwed stuff up. Once he'd read all those books it had gotten even worse, with him reciting facts about all these things you'd never given the slightest hint you wanted to know about. And now he was following Kon around like a lost pet, and bugging him and Cassie about where they'd gone and what they'd done, and what did it matter to Bart what Kon did and with who, anyway? So what if he's told Bart they'd see a movie and took Cassie instead? So what if he no longer wanted to waste his time playing mind-numbing video game for hours on end? Plans change, people change. Bart needed to just get over it.

Especially since the quicker Bart gets over it, the quicker Kon can get over it. He couldn't even have a normal conversation with Bart these days, because when he'd try, Bart would look so happy, like he'd just walked into a candy shop. Then, a moment later, without warning, he looked like he was about to cry. And Kon couldn't take that. He couldn't. It was like someone had shot him in the chest. With a kryptonite bullet. Coated with lemon juice, just for good measure. He liked Bart. He didn't want to see Bart hurt, and the fact he was responsible for that pain just made it worse. He wanted to talk to Bart. Wanted to stay up late with him to catch reruns of "Wendy the Werewolf Stalker" and play Trivia Pursuit and... and feed him and hold him and hug him.

Kon groaned. That was why he couldn't even talk to Bart. Kon _liked_ Bart. Wanted to take care of him for the rest of their lives and goof off and have fun and... He couldn't do that. Even if Bart felt the same way, which Kon doubted, Kon had a purpose, he had a goal. He had family to think about, he had Superman to deal with. He just...couldn't be Superman and be dating a boy.

No one would have a problem with it - no one would say anything about it, but it would matter to them. Kon knew he would be supported, but he also knew he would be treated differently. Aunt Martha had always talked about him meeting a nice girl and getting married. He'd brought Cassie over once - just as a friend - and after she'd left, Aunt Martha had acted as though they were engaged. When he'd brought Bart over, it was different. Not a hint that this could be the person Kon needed to settle down with. If Kon brought Bart home and said they were going to go to Canada and get married, the Kents wouldn't protest, but...it wouldn't be what they'd wanted for him. He wanted to make them proud of him. And Cassie's perfect. They got along okay, well, for the most part. She got bonus points for not being psycho or evil, unlike some of his other choices. And she was hot. Seriously hot. She was polite and well-mannered, and feminine, but not in a way that implied she couldn't handle herself in a fight.

Bart... Bart was spastic, spacey, and a bit self-centered.

He was also male. Kon couldn't do it. Cassie was the person he was supposed to like, and supposed to date. And maybe, maybe, if Bart hadn't been there, he would have ended up wanting to date her anyway. So he'll date her, and she'll be happy, and the Kents will be happy, and everyone will be happy. Bart will find a new friend, and he'll be happy. Eventually, Kon will be happy, too, because he'd done what he should do. The pain he was feeling now would subside, he just knew it.


	4. Chapter 4

He just likes to watch. And listen, he amends. Kon has to strain to listen, though, the open-mouthed panting's so rapid the inhalations are hardly separate from the exhalations, and it's hotter than anything he's heard before. And though he can't make out anything of the boy in the bed next to his other than several strands of brown hair peeking out from under the sheet, Kon knows his hand is moving fast. Fast enough to make the sheets appear to be vibrating slightly. He bites back a moan at the idea of the hand moving like that on him, and clutches the bedpost so hard it creaks. He freezes, but if Bart's heard, he doesn't care, as the motions haven't stopped. A quick glance to the bed on the other side of Bart's shows Tim's still asleep, thank god. The panting stops abruptly, and, judging from the muffled whimper, Bart's clamped his other hand over his mouth as the entire bed shakes violently for a few, brief moments. A hand appears through the sheets, pushing them down, and Kon quickly throws himself back onto his pillow, shutting his eyes and forcing his breathing to remain steady. Bart's gasping is quite audible now, and Kon does his best not to shift against his bed. He hears Bart push himself into a sitting position, his breathing slowing down to a normal rate.

"Kon!" Bart hisses after a moment.

Kon hopes Bart didn't see him jump, and continues pretending to be asleep.

"Kon!" Bart repeats more loudly.

"Hunh?" he asks, rubbing his eyes, then running a hand slowly through his hair. He lifts his head and looks at Bart. Stares at the teeth marks on the boy's hand. Not covering his mouth. Biting his fingers. He hides his slow thrust against the mattress by pushing himself further up on his elbows.

"You know," Bart says, smiling a bit, and not meeting Kon's eyes, "you…you could do more than just watch. Anytime." He glances over at Kon's bewildered expression. "I'm not saying you have to if you don't want! …just. If…if you do, you could. Anyway, um. 'Night!" so saying, Bart snuggles back under the sheets, and is asleep before Kon can get rid of the stupid look he knows is on his face.


End file.
